Yesterday, I was reading about possibly the great female tennis player of all time Serena Williams' extraordinary rant at an umpire and thought I would blog about it. But my trivial opinions on such an unsportsmanlike rant pale in comparison to what I now plan to write about - suicide.
I do this because on the day of writing (10th September), it is World Suicide Prevention Day and because quite frankly, this could have a lot more of a valuable impact on people than my cynical complaints about Serena.
I feel as if, as time has gone on, my blog posts relate more and more towards mental health (and less about 'politics and the media'!). Perhaps that is because my own experiences have shaped the way I see mental health illnesses, that I now find exponentially more serious, I don't know. Either way, there is no doubting that it is decidedly important that we raise awareness, and if I can keep finding excuses to write about it, I will.
Last year alone, 5965 people in the UK committed suicide. To put this into perspective, that is one person taking their own life every two hours, a worryingly extraordinary number even with the rising awareness of mental health problems in the last decade or so. And that is just in the UK alone. In the whole world, on average a person commits suicide every 40 seconds.
Furthermore, amongst young people between the ages of 20 and 34, suicide is the leading cause of death. Without wishing to undermine the severity of various other life-threatening physical diseases, this statistic to me shows just how dangerous mental health illnesses can be. Physically at that age you are at your strongest on average, yet seemingly mentally you can be at your weakest.
Undoubtedly we are on our way to breaking the stigma around these heart-breaking cases, yet in the last 10 years studies have shown that as little as 27% of people who took their own lives had been in contact with mental health professionals in the year leading up to their deaths. That shows a cruel lack of awareness still exists.
There are no particular causes of mental health illnesses but you can deduce the signs of a person who wants to give it all up at times. I know when I was at that point I didn't want to socialise with friends, and felt like I was talking about hopelessness a lot more than is usual. Lack of interest in hobbies, reckless behaviour, acting more withdrawn than they usually might, these are all signs that someone could be could be having suicidal thoughts. There can be many more, and they are different for anyone - but it is the effort that can make people feel more valued and seek professional support.
It is so hard to identify these causes but we can all do our bit. Regretfully, on days like today, it seems like social media blows up with pieces much like mine, throwing statistics at you. Yet we only make a difference if we translate this into our everyday life. Go for a coffee with your mates, be open with them, let them know you're there.
The mind controls our lives, it is the most complex part of us. Evidently, it can have the most inexplicable and intricate issues. Which is why we need to start taking it more seriously.
It is cliched but be there for someone. Let them talk, organise social events, be aware. You never know, you might save a life - and stop the pain that comes with it.
It is okay to not be okay.
Mental Health Helplines:
Samaritans - 116 123
Mind - 0300 123 3393
Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) - 0800 58 58 58
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